The Versa 4 has maybe less to do with the Versa 3 than it does with the Google pixel watch. This is not going to be a long review and it doesnt need to be because, ultimately, what this device comes down to is sort of the Synergy thats supposed to be happening with Google and Fitbit. Google, of course, owns Fitbit now so as a subsidiary. You would expect that Fitbit is going to kind of be blended into Google and thats already happening in this case with the Versa 4. There are features that have not so much been added, but that have been taken away. So the focus here with this watch is more so about what it can do for you when it comes to exercise and just being active, as opposed to say the sense 2, which has some health related. You know Health, sensors and other features that make it more of a health and a fitness Focus, watch the Versa, 4 and the sense 2 actually look a lot alike. They were designed the same way. They have the same physical button. That was, of course, not in the previous models and they use the same strap mechanism. Now that strap mechanism is also a carryover from the previous model, so lets say: youre upgrading from I dont know well, first sense a sense one and you want to get a versa. Four, you can take the bands or the straps that you have with you to use with this device, so thats kind of cool its nice to have that kind of a variety.
But for the most part, though I as I tested this and I was looking for – I was looking for differences more than anything else. Okay, the physical button, yes thats, an obvious difference, but for the most part, A lot of the things seem, the same so from the heart rate, monitor to the screen to just generally the way that the device is tracking exercise and fitness. It seems to me, like not a whole lots changed. A lot of things seem very similar to me: okay, fine, thats, all well and good, but what is being taken away in order to make that happen now, one thing youll notice, especially if youre coming up from the Versa 3, is youll notice that the software looks Different so, instead of Fitbit OS were using wear OS well or at least the variation of wear OS. In my opinion, because it just looks so much like a pixel watch its nice, its easy to get around in in terms of using the software its fine. What I struggled with more than anything – and I pointed this out in my sense to review too – is that I dont have third party app support. One thing I always liked about the previous models was that I could use Spotify, so I could play music directly from the watch. I didnt necessarily need my phone. If I didnt want it there and it worked really well, I mean other apps were perfect too Philips.
Hue had an integration if youre a Starbucks fan, there was one there too. There were certain apps that made sense. I even had one for barcodes for loyalty cards, so if I ever wanted to like scan a loyalty card, I just scan my watch. It was really good and even though Google wallet is in here so paying for stuff at you know, point of sale is really easy. Now I just I really do miss the those third party apps and its one thing that I couldnt really get past, because I felt like well in the past: youd have like Strava or other apps that could integrate with the fit. You know with Fitbit and it worked out well, because you would get even more data that you might normally get with Fitbit, but in this case unfortunately, you dont have that integration anymore and its not clear if Fitbit or Google are actually going to bring it back. Im just going to point out a couple differences with the sense too so that watch has things like the ECG for electrocardiograms Eda. So there there is a measurement for skin temperature in this watch, but it actually goes further in that watch and give you more information than this one. Does this ones very, very basic? As far as that goes, you dont youre not going to get any information really Beyond. Just, I think the basics when it comes to whats here. So, for example, because you dont have an ECG, you dont have a more advanced skin temperature sensor.
You dont have a body response sensor, either so kind of taking all that data data and coming together with some kind of a body response Court. Those are all features of the sense too that do not exist here with the Versa 4.. Now Fitbit is positioning that watch as more as the more of the health watch and this one more of the exercise and fitness watch. Okay, now bear in mind that you can track the same exercises without one than you can with this one. So, in effect, if youre going that way, youre trying to get both of those aspects versus this one youre, focusing more just on being active, theyre tracking, the same exercises and theyre tracking them the same way. So even the heart rate monitor everything from that to just at the screen anything that youre interacting with the device or anything that is collecting data for you when it comes to how active you are theres, really no difference. As far as I could tell in my in using both of them, I previously reviewed the sense too reviewing this thing. I didnt see any difference so in a sense, youre youre paying the extra money just for those extra features but, like I said already, you are losing out on third party apps and certain Integrations there too. So what youre getting here is a smart watch that I think, is a little bit more like an activity or fitness band that has some smart watch features.
Some of those features would be like things like how Alexa is integrated here. Strangely, though, Alexa is the only voice assistant, as opposed to Google Assistant, which was previously available in the previous models, but its not here, so you only get Alexa that you can talk to and its its pretty good. The integration is pretty good. The speaker and microphone are okay here too, so you can actually take phone calls, especially if youre an Android User. Somebody calls you you can actually take the call on the watch works. Okay, not crazy about the speaker, but its not bad, and you can also respond to text messages that way as well again, this is for Android users, if youre an iOS user, you cant do those things. Unfortunately, you cant pick up calls from the watch. Nor can you respond to text messages. What it is you can decide which apps or their notifications will come in. So you can see notifications coming you theyre, not actionable in most cases, so lets say I dont know you. You get a message from someone through work through slack or something like that. You can see that on here now you cant respond to it through the watch, but at least you can see it and decide whether or not you need to pull your phone out or not right, so the notification system. Actually, I dont have an issue with I mean I use signal for for messaging and it works.
Fine WhatsApp works fine. So from that standpoint, youre youre going to get a pretty good experience, because youre going to keep be up to date on whats Happening. The only problem is – and I know its like a broken record – is that because theres, no integration with the other apps, you cant really do anything on the watch itself, which means youre gon na, have to keep your phone with you often when youre hold, when youre Wearing this thing, which I the you know, the market, or at least the industry, was trying to move away from that to actually make the watches a little more self contained and self sufficient, but thats not really the case with the Versa 4. In my opinion, sure you can work out with it. The built in GPS will track your roots and all, and all that you know but its again. If you want to listen to music, you got to bring your phone with you. There is no way to do it on here. There is a way with Deezer for the moment, but and Pandora if youre in the U.S, but unfortunately those features are actually going to be removed soon too. As of this review by the time you see this, it may already be gone, but they are going to be removed as well, meaning that for music got ta bring the phone as Im summarizing here and Im just going to end things off battery life is one Of the best things about this, this thing will, last days before you need to recharge it, especially if youre not leaving the ozone display off and youre, not youre, using GPS, really only when you work out outside youre going to find this is going to last for Days I had this last in very moderate usage.
It was, it lasted me at least five days, thats excellent for any smart watch. So definitely one of the strong suits for the Versa. Four. If you youre looking to wear a watch that at least can last you and doesnt require you charging it every day. In the end, I think, if youre looking for something integrative for a smart watch, this is probably not the way to go if youre looking for something thats like a fitness band, but it has Smart Watch features, so he feels something a little bit more expansive. Maybe this might be the way to go, but if youre also looking for something where you feel like theres, a road map theres something expansive theres, something that theyre going to be adding new things. I I dont know yet at this point where Fitbit or Google want to take this device by removing things I dont know, is it addition by subtraction? If it is, I havent seen that its not something that I experienced in testing the device, and I cant say that it would be for you either. So I think, if you have modest goals, if you have modest needs, when it comes to what a smart watch is to you and what do you, what you want to tap into and not tap into, I think thats. The way you got to look at this dont look at it as a comparison to the Apple watch or Samsung Galaxy, or anything like that that you know even the pixel watch, just look at it.
Based on what do I want my smart watch to do. Do I want it to integrate with other apps in any way, if not, maybe its worth a look and thats? Really it and thats.KDChtYkFO0k
